1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing method and apparatus by which image processing is performed on a read image.
2. Related Back Ground Art
Copy machines are known that read an image of a document, such as a photograph, perform desired image processing on the read image, and print the image. With such a copy machine, to make copies while a specific portion of the document image is masked, first, the image is copied and a coordinate input device is used to designate a portion to be masked by referring to the copied image. In a personal computer, etc., to mask a document image, the image is first read by a scanner and is displayed on a display device, such as a monitor or a liquid crystal display, a display screen is then covered with a desired masking pattern to select a masking process.
As described above, since conventionally the masking is performed on image data by either printing a document image and designating a location for masking, or by displaying an image to be processed on a screen and designating a masking position, an output device, such as a printer or a display, is required. Accordingly, the cost and size of the apparatus increases, and its operation becomes complicated.
To overcome the above shortcomings, it is a first object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby a sheet, on which information instructing a processing method of a document image is described, is read by an image input section and the instructed image processing on the sheet is performed to output resultant image data, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is a second object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby the reading of a sheet on which a mask position is indicated and the reading of a document image are performed by a common reading section and the document image is output, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is a third object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby an image processing position is designated by using a mark sheet, image processing is preformed on the designated document image position and the resultant image is output, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is a fourth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby a position for image processing and the number of copies are designated by using mark sheets that ensure the output of a designated number of sheets of desired image data, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
Conventionally, in an image processing apparatus that employs a color scanner to read a color document image and processes the read document, various procedures are performed with the input color image data before the resultant image is output.
Color image data at a high resolution, for example, is superior in image quality to color image data at a low resolution. When color image data are processed at a high resolution, however, the processing volume is increased as the amount of data involved is significantly larger, and as a result the memory capacity required for storing the image data also increases.
To read and process a color document including both characters and photographs, the required processing time increases as the data amount involved increases. However, although a significant amount of time is spent in performing various procedures, smudges occur in the image of characters that are reproduced and printed.
To resolve the above described conventional problems, it is a fifth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby input character data are binarized and input photographic data are processed by using multi-bit data at a low resolution to reduce the total amount of image data, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is a sixth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby processing time for character data is reduced to shorten the total processing time required for a synthesis image, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is a seventh object of the present invention to provide an image processing method for the reproduction of desirable character images, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is an eighth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method for binarizing character images and for processing photo images at a lower resolution to reduce the total time required for processing image data, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
Conventionally, an image processing apparatus that performs superimposition of characters, images and illustrations reads, for example, images and illustrations by using an image reader, such as a scanner, to perform superimposition of them.
Therefore, for removing a stain from an image or for correcting a blank area, the read data must first be displayed on a display device, and a user must then designate a range in the data and remove the stain or compensate for the blank area. Such a correction can not be permitted by a dedicated apparatus such as this apparatus.
In addition, although the dedicated apparatus can be connected to a plurality of readers, it must select only one at a time and must read data by switching readers. Further, as means for combining a color image and an illustration into one, documents to be printed must be prepared according to colors. Moreover, when data are to be output to a plurality of different devices, the connections to output devices must be switched, or a user must switch the output devices that are connected via a selector.
Therefore, a conventional apparatus requires a display device and a pointing device, such a keyboard, that designates a range in the data to correct an image; accordingly, the cost of such an apparatus is high. Also, processes requiring an operator, such as delicate correction that is performed after an image has been enlarged, are needed.
To change the connection of input/output devices, an operator must remove a currently connected device and connect a new one or must operate a selector, which reduces the efficiency of the entire processing operation.
To overcome these conventional shortcomings, it is a ninth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method wherein a symbol and a corresponding process are input with an image and are set in as apparatus in advance, to reduce interference by an operator during the procedures that are performed for image processing and to increase the efficiency of the processing, and to provide an apparatus for performing image processing.
It is a tenth object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby by reading how to cope with stains or blank areas when an image is read, the stains and the blank areas can be handled according to the read-out processing method and an image can thus be easily corrected without requiring interference by an operator, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.
It is an eleventh object of the present invention to provide an image processing method whereby, by reading, at the same time that a document is read, previously recorded symbols that represent an input and an output device, a switching operation for the input/output devices is not required and the operating efficiency can therefore be increased, and to provide an apparatus for performing such image processing.